What I don't like is a team boxing themselves into a select couple of positions/players, because then they make mistakes. Carl Peterson was good for that, and Pioli didn't look any better really. Jacksonville killed themselves chasing defensive ends. Detroit killed themselves chasing wide receivers.

More on the pick of Yankey... Everyone knows we have a problem at guard. For starters, Allen has no business being a starter and the Chiefs haven't signed anyone else yet. Aside from this, you can't always draft for the now. I think this is a team that has to continue to look at almost all positions and see where can be upgraded or fill a hole. Remember this fact, improving a starting position improves depth. If Jeff Allen becomes a backup, he remains a guy that can still step in and start for you and at least slow someone down. He's not a good starter, but he still has value as a depth player. The move improves the team both in terms of the starting player's calibur and in terms of depth. I'd do the same thing at many other positions.

There is a statistic out there called ANYPA, that assesses the effectiveness of throwing the ball. Over the course of, oh, the past 30 years of NFL games, the team that has thrown the ball more effectively (that is has a higher ANYPA than the other team) has won the game 80% of the time. Obviously you do whatever you can to improve that statistic. Better, more explosive WRs, a better QB, a better O-Line, a better TE, a RB that can block and catch out of the backfield. Defensively, you need to improve pass rush ability and coverage ability, so DE, OLB, CB, FS primarily.

The plus of an offensive lineman is that he can have as much of an affect on the QB as a WR would. He makes the QB more effective in that he will not get sacked as often, he won't face pressure throws as often decreasing interception potential, he'll have more time to deliver explosive strikes down the field, and so forth. The most effective pressure on a QB comes from up the middle of the offensive line, so the OG position is of paramount importance in today's NFL. Offensive lineman make receivers more effective because they can now run more advanced and deeper routes than the may have otherwise. Teams also must get more creative in trying to create pressure (blitz) because a good offensive line doesn't allow pressure from the primary four rushers. When teams try to blitz to compensate for lack of a primary pass rush, they open up the field to the intermediate passing game. You get the added bonus, when drafting a lineman, of those picks being relatively safe in comparison to most any other position you draft.

A team can do one of two things, of course, try to get better at increasing their own ANYPA, as I suggest, or they can try to limit the other team's ANYPA. The latter, of course, lends to the discussion of drafting for pass rush or defensive back.

I have no problem with that philosophy, if the right player is there. Obviously that is true with drafting a guard. If Yankey isn't there at 23, it is unlikely I'd draft any other guard in round 1.

There are only 3 defensive backs I'd consider in round 1 and I rank them as follows:

1. Justin Gilbert
2. Kyle Fuller
3. Calvin Pryor

I'm sure people love HaHa and Darqueze, but count me out as a one of those people. If any one of those guys are there at 23, I'd pull the trigger. Some sites I've noticed have Fuller in round 2. I have my doubts. You have a guy that suffered a hernia but still played a good portion of the year. He runs sub-4.5 at 6'0" 190 and is tough, physical, and plays the run extremely well. That combination doesn't just come around every day.

I also like a couple of the DE prospects, Tuitt and Hageman especially.

I'm not married to a single line of thought. My first mock of the year (wasn't posted here) had Hageman as the top pick. As I see where the offseason goes, I might hone in a little more. If you asked me to rank the players as I'd take them at this point, I'd probably say this:

1. Justin Gilbert - CB - Oklahoma State - I don't see any way he's on the board at 23, but I've seen strange things.
2. Kyle Fuller - CB/FS - Virginia Tech - I love this kid's game about as much as Gilbert, he's heavily underrated on draftnik sites.
3. David Yankey - OG - Stanford - He might just be better than any guards that have come out the past few years.
4. Odell Beckham - WR - Louisiana State - He's explosive and could be a hell of a target in Reid's system.
5. Rashede Hageman - DE - Minnesota - At times unblockable, a team needs to harness his abilities.
6. Calvin Pryor - FS - Louisville - Not the prototypical FS in that he's not the super-athletic cover guy, but he can cover pretty well and he's a good tackler.
7. Jordan Matthews - WR - Vanderbilt - Highly underrated, precise route runner with great hands and sneaky speed.
8. Stephon Tuitt - DE - Notre Dame - Needs to mature, but could be a beast in the right environment.

This is assuming alot of the top-tier guys are all off the board as expected. I wouldn't count on a guy like Eric Ebron being there or an Anthony Barr, or so on ad so forth.

As for trading down, you have to have a trade partner and that isn't always possible.

02-26-2014, 10:39 PM

jason1981

I thought our oline got better the second half of the season and iv heard that allen had a good year. Asomoah got benched for swartz cuz of pass protection. Osamoah is a better run blocker but swartz is a bettter pass protecter. If all did have a bad year then why not resitn both guys and move one to the other spot and allen will be back up then we will hav3 more flexibility in the draft. But our oline wasnt a problem at the end of the year. Our defense was. Amd wide receiver except the final whem bowe decided to show up.

02-27-2014, 12:48 AM

kccrow

I'm looking at the defense and wondering a couple of things, is the talent that devoid and if so, where? If there is talent voids, do they need to be filled via the draft?

Everybody talks about the defensive backs, but that isn't where I think the problem lies entirely. I think the most glaring weakness defensively is actually DE.

For all the raving everyone does over KC's "run stopping" DEs, they aren't as productive as one of the DEs listed in the first pair. That pair is the New York Jets Richardson and Wilkerson respectively.

KC needs a disruptive presence on the defensive line and could improve both slots. I think you let Jackson walk and you go fairly hard after Arthur Jones of Baltimore. Jones would instantly upgrade one spot. You can then draft for the other spot, but don't have that immediate need this season.

Realistically, KC only needs one starter at DB and that is FS. That could come via re-signing Abdullah, getting a free agent, or via the draft. Abdullah spent most of last season acclimating to the pro game again, but he wasn't all that bad when he started for Minnesota and he started to look better as the season wore on.

As for CB, I don't think the need is as strong as others, but I'm all for bringing in competition. That is, of course, unless a really good one falls in our laps in round 1. As I've stated, my top two guys are likely Gilbert and Fuller but I like Fuller's ability to transition to FS.

So, lets pretend KC signs Arthur Jones and re-signs Abdullah. What glaring weakness is there on defense over and above the weaknesses at OG and WR on offense? What about if we also sign Jeremy Maclin or maybe a Doug Baldwin? At this point, would OG look as bad as it may seem at this point?

02-28-2014, 01:08 AM

jason1981

Kccrow I dont think og is a big weakness as long as we resign ekther swart or asomoah. Our line played great the second half of the season. If we lose both of them then yes but think we should resign one of our own guys. I say FS,de or wr with our 1st pick. You seem stuck that og is our biggest need.